Electrical cooking utensil



G. F. WELLS. ELECTRICAL COOKING UTENSIL.

I APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 22, 192l- 1,437,122.

Pafented Nov. 28, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHLET I.

INVENTOR George F. WeIIs.

may/5W,

74 ATTORNEYS G. F WELLS.

ELECTRICAL COOKING UTENSIL. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 22. 1921.

1 ,437, 1 22. Patented Nov. 28, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHtE] 2.

a" Fig-6 16 a 9 2,0 m, g ll lll IO F 19.4 55

a, [Z [2 2:5 F1'.5 V I I I L" WITNESS INVENTOR i i I BYGeorge FWe 34 ATTORNEYS menses. 28, 1922.

* UNITED STATES GEORGE F. WELLS, OF SAN FBANCISCOJCALIFORNIA.

PATEN OFFICE.

ELECTRICAL eooxme UTENSIL. 9

7 Application filed September 22, 1921. 1 Serial 1%. 502,520.

To all whom it My concern:

' Be itknown that I, GEORGE F. WELLS, a citizen of the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented a new and useful Electrical Cooking Utensil, I of which the. following. is a spegc-ification. The present invention relates to domestic. cooking devices, more particularly of the portable type,- a form .of which is here represented as a waffle iron, although it is to be' understoodihat, my invention may be embodied in othertypes of utensils.

It is anobject of the present inventibn to provide in an electrical cookin utensil ha-ving hingedly connected part means simplifying the electrical connections and wiring of the device for the distribution of an electrical current to the various so-call'ed.

electric'heating elements that may be em-.

plciyed.

t is, therefore, an object to provide an improved electrical connection whereby only one plug attachment and connection is necessary and from which current is distributed to a plurality of heating elements, it being in this connection, an object to eliminate and overcome the use of multiple plug ing attachments and more particularly to e immate the requirement of an individual plugging attachment for each heating element.

'It'is another object of the invention-to provide especially an improved type of electricaliconnection and hinge joint in electrical devices where parts are hingedlyconnectedand each of the .parts is provided with an electrically energized instrument; the i'mproved hinge ijoint providing for the .arrangement of the-wiring in a concealed and :protected manner wholly with n the eleinents of thehinge joint. 1 Another object of the invention is to pro: videa simple; inexpensive and practicable J combination 'ofshell sections with respective cooking devices. In this relation it is a further obj ect Off thev invention .to provide a systemof'co nstruction in which the cook- 3 ing utensil may, in the course of its manufacture, be hi1ilt up. inorganized .unit assemblies, each substantially complete and adapted fquickly'mounted upon and associated with another IQSPECUYQ Juri t organlzatlon.

to be. be readily, accurately and.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, willbe made manifest in the following description of the preferred form of the invention, which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood that it is no't'intended to limit the invention to the embodlment shown by the said drawings and description, asvariations may be adoptedwithin the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

hinge connection.

Fig. 6 is. a longitudinal central section through the hinge structure taken on the planes indicatedat line 66, Fig. 5.

The inventionv in the present instance, is shown as embodied'in a cooking utensil having a pair of' hingedly connected shell sections-which may be made in any desired manner andof any suitable material, each I of the shell sections being substantially bowlshaped and provided with a cooking means, comprising; as here shown, wafile plates, which are arranged in the respective shell sections and are adapted to be brought into overlappingface to face position in the usual manner of waffle irons. One feature of the present lnvention resides in the novel means of securing the. inexpenslve mounting of the jrespective.,wafile plates in the shell sections. Another feature of'the invention is the improved hinge construction'by which the shell sections are movably connected to each other and which hinge structure is designed to farm a housing through which extend con ductin'g wires to serve electric current to electrical heating elements which are interposed between the shell sections and their respective cooking; plates; the heating elements preferablybeing secured to the cooking-- organization'and the, shel'ls, as another organization, and these are adapted to be plates; By providing for the attachment of each of the heating elements-directly t its respective cooking plates, these parts may be assembled in the tactoryas a unitary organization and it is desirable to provide means insuch organization to which there may be readily and. accurately connected the electric service wires. lit is also desirable to provide for the assembly of therelathe shell sections as a unitary organization and to provide for the distributlontotthe service Wires and to enable 'the'c'ompletion of an electric circuit by-"the attadhment of'a sin-- gle service plug to onev or the other of the shell sections, asmay be desired and from one single plug connection current will be distributed to the several electrical heating units in the shell sections. By construct ing and assembling the'shell sections and the necessary wiring therewith, as a unitary organization, this enables the rapidfand etficient manufacturing and assembly, of the wafiie plate. and itselernent as one unitary quickly and properly wired together ;and associated in" the completion of the utensil. [The shell sections are preferably of duplicate construction so .that they may be utilized in the device, either as the bottom or the top of the shell, as will bedetermined only by the character of the hinge part attached to the shell section. It is also desirable that the-cooking plates with theinelementsbe substantially duplicate and readily inter,

changeable facilitate assembly and repair.

More particularly," in its illustrated em bodiment,:theinvention is incorporated in a utensil comprising a shell-like bottom= section 2 on which may be'sec'ured or provided,

in any desired manner, suitable legs 3, and

these may be secured to a base 4:. Compleinentary to the bottom shell2 is a top or upper shell 5, and these are adapted to be posed a vcoaxial lug Q'pirovided on a pad,

or tasteningflangesklll,screwed or otherwise secured to a bottom shell sections The shell sections are substantially dupliflcate and made of comparatively thin metal and are in the shape of shallow bowls. Within each of "the shell sections there is provided a cooking -device, 'here shown as in the form n'fiawatile plate 11, having on one sirrtacethe usual nogs 12' andwebs l3,

1 forming channels toreceivethe batter.

'passing through the element and intothe feature of "the present invention, resides in the construction of the shell sections and the Waflie plates and, as here shown, each shell, which has a circular and slightly tapering wall part or edge is provided with means for determining the position of the "inserted wane plate 11, so that the plates; when brought face to face 'in the closed or cooking position, hear one upon the other. The

peripheral surface of each of the Wafile plates is made substantially complementary vto the rinr of the shell sections and theretore thezplate is trictionally held in its posi- 5 tion when is forced into the rim or flange part of a shell section' The position of the wafiie, plate may be determined in divers k manners and, as here shown, each shell has a slight shoulder or head 15, projecting in- I wardly at a suitable distance from the circumferential edge of the shell and against '85 which shoulderjor, head the inner corner of an inserted plate 11 will abut. While friction may bedepended upon to retain an inserted plateto its seat within the shell'see' tioii, more positive means maybe utilized, if desired, and such may consist of interlocking means acting relatively with the flange part of each shell and its inserted plate 11. Such interlocking means in one form is shown in i Fig, i, as including slightly indented spots or zones 16 in the rim or flange part of each a shell section, the convex inner surface of these indented spots being designed to project into a slight depression ordepressions,

as, for instance, a circumferential. groove 17 0 formed in the periphery. otthe plate 11,-

This interlocking means serves-to provide relative y1elding,-as.between the flangepart of the shell section and the edge "ofa plate asthe vlatter is forced into the shell and 0 further prevents the plate from'falling from its seat in its shell. To remove the plate from its seat for. the purpose otfm'aking inspection. renewalsor repair, a tool, such as a screw-driver can 'be inserted in an a.perture 18, located, for instance; ad acent the hinge member and the tool pressed against the inserted plate and the latter forced "out K w-ardly from itsshell. L

For heating cooking ranged upon its back any suitable "form of; electrical heating element 19 which preferably isassembledupon the back of a fplatef and fastened, as by means of-a sc're'v'vQO' plate. This, therefore, enables the assembly of the plate and its :element as one unitary organization which can be readily'inserted in its respective shell section, while apair of the latter is assembled separately as a unitary organization; To further facilitate suchseparate assembly organizations, electrical connect ons are secured by the screw 3 120. upcn the electrical element 19; said connections providing for the ready and accu ISO plate lh there is arrrate'attachment of the proper service wires.

To-tha't end there is\mounted, asup'on a sheet of asbestos or other insulating material 21, on the top ofthe heating element, a'jplate 22 or other suitable piece, which is rovided with a, pair of upwardly exten ing and spaced bracket arms 23. Each of these arms 23 has an insulated binding post 24 and from which leads a respective conductor 26 for the terminals of the heating unit On each bindin post 24 a binding nut 27 which is adapted'tobe set against ,a service wire, as 28. v I One of the features of theresent invention is the provisionfor the 'stribution of the electric current from a suitable source by means of distributing wires-which, in the present case. are protected and concealed by eing extended in and through'thdhinge construction. I

As shown in Fig. 6, such construction in one form embodies a tubular trunnion- 30.

.which is, secured fixedly as-by a set screw 31 or otherwise, in the central, hinge lug 9 and this tube projects endwise into the endlugs.8'8 of the hinge but terminating in one of the hinges to provide an ample clearance space 32 intowhich pass, the servce Wires 28, which are nadapted' .tobe attached' to the binding .posts 24, above referred to. Theseservice wires pass through- ,theshell section 5 and, intoa bore or drill hole extending radially *from ,thepocket 4 32, and thence the wires 28 extend longitudin'ally into the pivot tube 30 from where they pass through an opening 34 in the sideof the tube and down through a radial hole 35 in the bottom hinge part 10. -Fro1n this hole 35, the wires 28; pass to res ctive at-v tachment pins 36 fastened in an insulated from. the bottom shellsection 2. From each of the pins .36 extend feed Wires28" to be at-- tached to the binding postsQA of the heat-' ing unit 19 in the lower shell section. The

hinge 1ugs8'89 may ,be axially bored and the trunnion or pivot tube 30, passed intagthe borehole and then secured, as above described, the ends oft the 'bore hole being plugged as at 37. The terminal pins 36' of the wiring may be enclosed and protected in a receptacle 38 Pinto which maybe inserted the usual plug connected 'to' an electrical extension cord in the well known man 'ner.

be seen by this system of wiri ng, that it is From the above it will be seen that but one plug attachment is necessary to serve current to the terminal pins 36 of the wiring from which pins run 'saidsub-Wires 28 V and 28,'one leading to the bottom heating 60' unit and theother to the top heatingunit; the latter passing throughfth'e hollow hinge joint structure in a practicable, protected and concealed manner, the whole. producing a neat and attractive appearances It Wlll wiring-of the f possible to organize the shell sections with the complete wiring 2028 as an entire organization ready to receive the (kuickly applied, previously organized coo ing parts, each with its electric heating e ements to which electrical connection is readily,

plate made by'the fastening of the endsof the I wires 20 and 28 to'the respective binding posts'24, Q

' What is claimed: I a

' 1, In an electrical cooking device, ahol-j low shell having a rim' of resilient material, a cooking plate' disposed in said shell, and

means for detachablyholding the plate in the rim comprisinga projectionon one of said two parts adapted to engage into a space located in the other ofthe two parts.

2. ,In an electrical; cooking device, a-hol I i low shell having a rim of resilient material, a cooking plate disposed in said shell, andmeans for detach-ably holding \the plate in a "the rim comprising a projection on'the vrim adapted to engage in a roove in the plate.

3. In an electrical coo ing device, a pair oi cooking plates, and a hinge connecting the plates comprising a lug for each plate,

and a hollow tube attached to one of the lugs androtatable in the other for concealing the connections to the device. 4. In an electrical cooking device, a pair ofcooking plates, and a vhinge connectingthe plates comprisin I a pairof hollow lugs for one plate, a ho lowrlug for ,the other plate,.said last-named; lug being disposed 1 00 axially between the others, and a hollow tube'extending through the central lug and into one of the other lugs, said tube being jastened to one of the lugs but rotatable in the other.

5. An e lectricalcooking utensil including Ill) and Wholly concealed in'the hingestructure including hollowllti,

ich, have outlet openings, where v by electric wires may be threaded. into,-;

throu hfland fromithe structure. a

8. hinge structure for connecting given parts, said structure including .hollow aligned, pivotally connected portions, certain of which, have outlet openings,"whereby electric wires .may -be"threaded into,

through and from the structure, and bewholly concealed therein; i Q..A hinge structureincluding a part of hinge pads to be secured on respective parts,

10d hingedly connected shellsections having 1 each pad having [lug means, 'all'--in axial l igs having latex-ail Opening to the pads tain lugs having lateral opening to the'pads,

whereby electric Wires may be led frompari; whereby electric wires may be led from part to part through the; hinge structure. to pert'through the hingestrncture, the lugs 10 e ,2 10. A hinge structure including a part being connected'by a tubular trunnion.

5 of hinge pads to be secured on respective l'ntestim0ny whereoffl have hereunto set perts, eachpfis'td having lug means, allin niy'han d." axial alignmeni; eachlug beinghollow, cer- GEORGE F. WVELLS. 

